Michael Collins (Cork South-West, Independent Ireland Party)

I suppose any movement is to be welcomed if we are going to make changes that are desperately needed regarding the housing market. We need to support any measure that can do that as long as it is a common-sense issue.

The problem I have is where the changes are going to be made. Sometimes, even before you go ahead anywhere, you have to go back. If you look at the actions of Uisce Éireann, we have waste treatment plants all over the country bursting at the seams and into waters and rivers everywhere. How do we intend to improve there? Those towns, whether it is Dunmanway, Shannonvale, Clonakilty, Ballydehob, Rosscarbery or Gully, to pick a few in west Cork, are pouring raw sewage into the tide and local public parks. There are no extra houses going to be built there, so where is this plan going to work?

Are the planning guidelines going to change for people who want to get one-off planning? I was with someone the other day in this position and mother of God, we spent an hour and a half with the architect. The conditions put on the person were frightening. They wanted to build a lovely little timber, three-bedroom house. It is not going to happen. They were told they could not do certain things and they had to draw up various reports. Before I left, I had figured out that he had already spent €30,000 and had not even a shovel put in the ground yet. We have a real crisis in this country. I know the Minister is trying to improve things. First of all, we need to make these Government bodies accountable to people in some way and accountable to public representatives. I look at the case of Aghadoe, where residents have had 14 bursts in their mains water supply since July. This has resulted in closures in the local crèche, the local school and, obviously, tourism businesses. Not once has the Government shared and come back and said to us that it will try to resolve the issue with us.

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